Florida man arrested for filming another arrest

A Florida man is facing criminal charges after an officer arrested him – all for taping the officer as he attempted to detain another individual.

The incident began on St. Patrick’s Day, when Miami-Dade Officer
Michael Valdez arrived at a store in Cutler Bay in order to
arrest the owner on misdemeanor traffic charges. Freelance disc
jockey Lazaro Estrada was performing a promotional event at the
time Valdez arrived, and started recording the arrest on his
smartphone.

According to CBS Miami, Estrada said he
started taping the incident when the officer threw the handcuffed
owner down onto the sidewalk. Valdez can be seen signaling to
Estrada to move away, and the disc jockey can be seen stepping
back into the store, though he continues recording.

“I backed off into the building and I stayed behind the glass
doors,” Estrada said to CBS 4. “Obviously, all I had was
my phone in my hands in clear sight…and he only told me once. I
did what he told me.”

When more officers arrived at the scene, they told Estrada they
needed his information. Estrada asked what he did wrong, and
later Valdez criticized Estrada for not listening to his orders.

“The guy’s armed, three times my size, I’m telling you to
back off,” Valdez told Estrada. When the officer says
Estrada will be arrested, the disc jockey asks what for and the
officer’s reply can’t really be heard.

“At no point did he interfere, impede or obstruct the officer
in the performance of his duties,” Gaviria told CBS 4.
“The video clearly shows Mr. Estrada was a very safe distance
away from the officer.”

“Just like police officers have their dash cams, private
citizens have their cell phones. There’s no difference,”
Perazzo added.

This isn’t the first time police have reacted to being filmed
with arrests. Earlier this year, a Massachusetts man was detained
and charged with violating the state’s wiretapping rules when he
took out his cell phone and recorded an officer cursing while he
worked a street detail. The officer stated the resident was
“secretly audio taping,” but the man claimed his phone
was out in full view.

In a particularly dramatic case last year, California police
arrested a man for allegedly disturbing a crime scene with loud
music and video recording them. As they attempted to arrest the
man, his dog jumped out from the car and was shot dead at the
scene.

Meanwhile, police in Dallas, Texas, came out earlier this month
and asked citizens to stop filming police, since the behavior was
creating “major safety issues.” As RT reported, police
argue that it’s not clear who is following them many times and
why they are filming their actions.

A 2012 ruling by the Supreme Court, however, upheld the citizen’s
right to record on-duty police officers.